After the Ayodhya Ram Mandir's Pran Pratishtha, the original Ramayan by Ramanand Sagar is set to return to television. The show will be telecast on Doordarshan, just as it was, in 1987, when it was first aired.
The series featured Arun Govil as Lord Ram and Dipika Chikhlia as Sita. The series was aired when the country was under lockdown during COVID-19. Doordarshan, taking to X, wrote, “Lord Shri Ram has come! India's most popular show 'Ramayana' is back once again. Watch Ramanand Sagar's Ramayana once again on #DDNational!” (loosely translated from Hindi). They also shared a clip from the show.
रिपु रन जीति सुजस सुर गावत।
— Doordarshan National दूरदर्शन नेशनल (@DDNational) January 31, 2024
सीता सहित अनुज प्रभु आवत॥
आ गए हैं प्रभु श्री राम! एक बार फिर वापस आ गया है पूरे भारत का सबसे लोकप्रिय शो 'रामायण'। रामानंद सागर की रामायण एक बार फिर #DDNational पर, जल्द देखिए!#Ramayan | @arungovil12 | @ChikhliaDipika | @LahriSunil pic.twitter.com/W8PU5V7wVH
When it was first aired, the show achieved cult status. Another show that achieved cult status in India was Kaun Banega Crorepati, hosted by superstar Amitabh Bachchan. The mythological show is expected to be watched by the Indian audience on a large scale. The date of the telecast hasn't been revealed yet. The series also starred Sunil Lahiri as Lakshman, the late Dara Singh as Hanuman and the late Arvind Trivedi as Ravana.
During the lockdown, Mahabharata by BR Chopra too, was re-telecast. In June 2023, Adipurush, a movie based on the Ramayana was released. It, however, garnered controversy due to bad dialogue writing. It was also banned in two cities in Nepal-- Pokhara and Khatmandu. Authorities were miffed as the film called Sita the daughter of India. Sita is believed to be from Nepal.
